Riddles of the Soul

Written 1917 (CW 21)

This is the first complete English edition of one of the most important books by Rudolf Steiner, Vom Seelenrätseln. Dr. Steiner said of the first essay that it is written not with a pen, but with “soul spades that want to rip away the planks that board up the world” (that is, clear away the limits to knowledge set by natural science), “but wants to do so with inner work of the soul.”

In the second essay he does battle with Max Dessoir, a typical foe of the spirit. Dessoir’s response to Steiner’s essay is printed as an appendix.

Steiner describes for the first time how the three soul forces (thinking, feeling and willing) relate to the body’s three systems: the nerve and sense system, the rhythmic system, and the metabolic and limb system. This is a unique (though not easy) exploration of inner and outer frontiers and how bridges between them are built.

This volume is a translation from German of Vom Seelenrätseln (GA 21).

Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) was born in the small village of Kraljevec, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now in Croatia), where he grew up. As a young man, he lived in Weimar and Berlin, where he became a well-published scientific, literary, and philosophical scholar, known especially for his work with Goethe's scientific writings. At the beginning of the twentieth century, he began to develop his early philosophical principles into an approach to systematic research into psychological and spiritual phenomena. Formally beginning his spiritual teaching career under the auspices of the Theosophical Society, Steiner came to use the term Anthroposophy (and spiritual science) for his philosophy, spiritual research, and findings. The influence of Steiner's multifaceted genius has led to innovative and holistic approaches in medicine, various therapies, philosophy, religious renewal, Waldorf education, education for special needs, threefold economics, biodynamic agriculture, Goethean science, architecture, and the arts of drama, speech, and eurythmy. In 1924, Rudolf Steiner founded the General Anthroposophical Society, which today has branches throughout the world. He died in Dornach, Switzerland.